


what could've been

by skywalkerlexi



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-20
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:06:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23748052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skywalkerlexi/pseuds/skywalkerlexi
Summary: endgame properly sent me into a month of depression after i watched it, so here i am a year later rewriting it! i'm not going to change too much and i'll probably do a couple of "alternate scenes." I also probably wont put stuff in order bc i suck at organization but i'll have like the scene "prompt" in the chapter name. i hope u guys enjoy!!!(for reference, i used the marvel wiki script and changed some stuff)
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanov
Comments: 10
Kudos: 38





	1. this is gonna work steve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i just noticed these are gonna be really short if i don't change much but whatever hahah i'll include all the stuff needed for context

ROCKET: Okay, who here hasn't been to space?

[Nat, Cap, and Rhodey raise their hands.] [Carol Danvers scoffs.]

RHODEY: Why?

ROCKET: You better not throw up on my ship.

NEBULA: Approaching jump in 3...2...1!

[The ship jumps forward into a wormhole, and we see Steve holding onto his seat for dear life. A close up of his eyes show them widening slightly at the exhilaration of this new experience, the galaxies lighting them up.]

[The ship slows down and hovers in orbit of the planet seen in the hologram previously. Carol Danvers hovers in front of the Benatar.]

CAROL DANVERS: I'll head down for recon.

[A shot of the passengers inside the Benatar preparing for the impending confrontation. We see Steve Rogers sitting in his seat on the Benatar in thought. He gets up, walks to the front of the ship.]

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Rogers. You ready?

[We see Steve looking down at something we can't see yet in his hand, presumably the compass of his old love, Peggy. Steve turns to Natasha with a sullen look on his face. Natasha sighs with understanding. She places her hand on top of his.]

NATASHA ROMANOFF: This is gonna work, Steve.

STEVE ROGERS: I know it will.

[We now see what Steve Rogers is holding in his hand. It’s a photograph of him and his best friend James "Bucky" Barnes when they were teens. Steve without the serum, wearing baggy pants and a button up shirt way too big for him and Bucky wearing a tailored suit.]

STEVE ROGERS: Cause I don't know what I'm going to do if it doesn't.

[Cut to Natasha, who gives Steve a soft smile and a small nod. She moves her hand from on top of his to his shoulder, pulling him in for a quick hug.]

STEVE ROGERS: What was that for?

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Just want to appreciate what we - what I have, before anything else happens.

[Steve smiles softly, almost sadly at Natasha's words.] [Carol Danvers approaches the Benatar.]

CAROL DANVERS: No satellites, no ships, no armies, no ground defenses of any kind. It's just him.

NEBULA: And that's enough.


	2. listen, fur-face

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> next chapter is gonna be the angsty stevenat talk get ready i made lots of changes hehe

[The camera cuts to a sunset in San Francisco, showing a metal face with a sign saying in its headings, "RESTRICTED AREA, DO NOT ENTER" with the subtext, "AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY BEYOND THIS POINT, SECURITY ID OR ESCORT REQUIRED", then cuts to a scene inside the New Avengers facility. Natasha Romanoff is sitting in a ballet leotard, pointe shoes and tights on a bench in some sort of dance studio. She’s looking up at something we can’t see, smiling softly. Then, as if she realizes something, she looks down, takes a breath, her eyebrows creasing. We immediately cut to her training tirelessly, shooting rounds in the gun range, running laps around the compound, running up and down the bleachers in the basketball court. Finally we see her in the gym with a punching bag. She puts on boxing gloves and sizes up the bag, starting to punch. Zooming in on her face, we can tell she is disturbed; she’s trying to distract herself. Her punches slow down and get louder. With every punch, we see a flash of a memory. Natasha training fallen hero, Wanda Maximoff, how to fake an accent. Natasha training fallen hero, Peter Parker, how to do a roundhouse kick. Natasha ranting about politics with fallen hero T’Challa. Natasha laughing with fallen hero Sam Wilson and Captain Steve Rogers at a bar in Europe when they were on the run. Cut to the old punching bag breaking at the seams, sand spilling out of the bottom. Natasha takes a step back, pausing, and almost crying. She then angrily rips off her gloves and throws them to the corner, hitting the metal trash can with a loud bang. Right away we cut to someone cutting two pieces of bread with peanut butter filling into a couple of triangles, as someone else was speaking. The camera pans up to Natasha, who takes her hair out of its braids. She now has red, long hair, over-colouring her blonde streaks. She listens Rocket Raccoon out about his status so far.]

ROCKET: Yeah, we boarded that highly suspect warship Danvers pinged.

[The camera cuts showing a few of the Avengers in holographic calls from the left to right, respectively: Nebula and Rocket Raccoon, Okoye, Danvers with a tomboyish haircut, and Rhodes.]

NEBULA: It was an infectious garbage scowl.

ROCKET: So, thanks for the hot tip. [turns to Danvers and replies back with a smirk]

CAROL DANVERS: Well, you were closer.

ROCKET: Yeah. And now we smell like garbage.

[Carol smirks]

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [turns to Okoye] You get a reading on those tremors?

OKOYE: It was a mild subduction under the African plate.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Do we have a visual? How are we handling it?

OKOYE: Nat, it's an earthquake under the ocean. We handle it by not handling it.

[Natasha looks down for a fleeting second, almost disappointed there's nothing to busy her racing mind with.]

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [turns to Danvers] Carol, are we seeing you here next month?

CAROL DANVERS: Not likely.

ROCKET: What, you gonna get another haircut?

CAROL DANVERS: [irritated] Listen fur-face, I'm covering a lot of territory. The things that are happening on Earth, are happening everywhere, on thousands of planets.

ROCKET: [murmurs to himself] All right, all right, that's a good point.

CAROL DANVERS: So you might not see me for a long time.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Alright. Uh, well. This channel is always active. So, if anything goes sideways...anyone's making trouble where they shouldn't...comes through me.

[Okoye agrees in her language.]

ROCKET: Okay.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Alright.

[The Avengers cut off their calls one by one...]


	3. here to do your laundry?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this scene is SO heartbreaking but i can't watch it without laughing about how nat is sitting, if you can even call it that
> 
> also, I tried to kinda step into steve's shoes in this one and give his perspective on the whole dusting and tony situation bc i feel like we barely got any of that in endgame.

[Nat sighs, exhausted. She sits down, as she notices Rhodes still online in the call.]

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Rhodes. Where are you?

RHODEY: Mexico. The Federales found a room full of bodies. Looks like a bunch of cartel guys. Never even had the chance to get their guns off.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [clears throat and looks down] It's probably a rival gang.

RHODEY: Except it isn't. [Nat realizes something.] It's definitely Barton. What he's done here, what he's been doing for the last few years... I mean, the scene that he left... [Nat's eyebrows crease as she gradually tears up.] I gotta tell you, there's a part of me that doesn't even want to find him.

[A brief moment of silence from Natasha. She is still looking down, reluctant to show Rhodes her inner turmoil. She reaches out and grabs the neglected peanut butter sandwich and takes a bite while chewing through tears.]

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Will you find out where he's going next?

RHODEY: Nat...?

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Please.

RHODEY: [reluctantly nods] 'Kay. [Rhodes cuts off his call]

[Nat puts the sandwich back on the plate, hunger being the least of her struggles. She crumples into a mess of tears, trying to hold back sobs.]

STEVE ROGERS: You know I'd offer to cook you dinner...[Nat inhales deeply, instantly trying to mask her misery.]...but you seem pretty miserable already. [Out of nowhere, Rogers slumps over a bookshelf, in the same mood as he is in the therapy session, as Nat wipes off the tears off her face.]

NATASHA ROMANOFF: You here to do your laundry?

STEVE ROGERS: And to see a friend.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [Nat takes in a deep breath again, trying to steady her voice.] Clearly, your friend is fine.

STEVE ROGERS: [Looks down at his keys, fumbling with them. He's one of the only people who can tell when Nat is lying.] You know I saw a pod of whales when I was coming up the bridge.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: In the Hudson?

STEVE ROGERS: There's fewer ships, cleaner water.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: You know, if you're about to tell me to look on the bright side. Um...[notices the uneaten peanut butter sandwich]...I'm about you to hit you in the head with a peanut butter sandwich. [jokingly smiles, as Rogers does the same]

STEVE ROGERS: Sorry. Force of habit. [Throws his jacket, then sits down on another chair, opposite Natasha.]

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Did you buy the milk I told you to get? 

STEVE ROGERS: Yeah, it’s in the fridge. They had a sale, actually. 10% off.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Wow. [sarcastically] A steal. 

[Steve chuckles and smiles at Nat softly.]

STEVE ROGERS: Remember in Paris? When we were on the run-

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [finishing his sentence] -and we dug through a trashcan to find coupons for food? How could I forget. [chuckling] Sam looked like a damn pigeon when that spider jumped out--

[Natasha pauses, remembering where Sam is now. She looks down at her hands, twisting them uncomfortably. Steve gives her a sad, understanding look.]

STEVE ROGERS: You know, I keep telling everybody they should move on and...grow. Some do. But not us.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: If I move on, who does this?

STEVE ROGERS: Maybe it doesn't need to be done.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [thinks for a moment] I used to have nothing. And then I got this. This job...this family. And I was...I was better because of it. And even though...they're gone...I'm still trying to be better.

STEVE ROGERS: [nods understandingly] When I came out of the ice, I had nothing except for Peggy. Or, I thought I did. When I found out Buck was alive...I felt like my world was coming back to me. And I had Sam. [pauses] Then Peggy was gone, and I didn't want to lose the last thing I had left from my old life...So I did what I thought was necessary to save it.

[Steve pauses for a moment. Nat urges him on with a nod.]

STEVE ROGERS: I regret it. I've told Tony that, but I'm not sure if he can ever forgive me. I just can't help but think that if I had told him about Buck, this all would've never happened. 

[Nat opens her mouth to reassure Steve that the blame wasn't on one person, but Steve shakes his head, as if he knows what she's about to say.]

STEVE ROGERS: [smiles jokingly] I think we both need to get a life.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [scoffs] What, you gonna propose to me under the Eiffel tower again?

STEVE ROGERS: That - [points at Nat accusingly] - that was to distract that Interpol guy and you know it.

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [smiling] Sure.

[A long pause]

STEVE ROGERS: [awkwardly] You did say yes, though. 

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [under her breath] Боже мой. Well, I wasn’t going to say no! That would’ve drawn more attention. 

STEVE ROGERS: Still...[gestures to Nat’s left hand] You never took it off. 

[We see a close up of Nat’s left ring finger, adorned with a silver ring with a diamond in the center. Nat’s fingers trace over the sparkling rock. Simple, but elegant. We cut back to Natasha, pausing for a moment, as if debating whether to say this.]

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Maybe I don’t want to. 

[Steve is silent, at a loss for words.]

STEVE ROGERS: Nat, I’ve been meani- Can we talk? About everything that happened?

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [struggling to form a complete sentence] I - I mean - Yeah, let’s talk about it. I have s-

[Then suddenly camera footage pops up in front of them, showing Scott Lang with his Quantum Realm Van behind him.]

SCOTT LANG: Oh! Hi. Hi! Is anyone home? This is Scott Lang. We met a few years ago, at the airport? In Germany? I got really big, and I had my mask on. You wouldn't recognize me.

STEVE ROGERS: [Standing up] Is this an old message?

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [Also standing up] It's the front gate.

* * *

[doing laundry](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=doing%20laundry)

A term used for [having sex](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=having%20sex). [Fabric softener](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Fabric%20softener) can also be used when [doing the laundry](https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=doing%20the%20laundry)

* * *

Just gonna leave that there ;)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> scott!!! you lil shit get outta here w ur time heist plan we wanna see WHAT HAPPENED IN EUROPE


	4. let me go, it's okay + i miss her man

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> THIS IS TO MAKE UP FOR THE SAD CHAPTER I WROTE ON MY OTHER FIC
> 
> my stevenat bbs this is for u

[Natasha electrocutes Clint and she runs towards the cliff. Clint gets up and shoots an explosive arrow knocking her down. Clint then runs towards the cliff and jumps. Natasha jumps after him and hooks him up to a grappling hook]

CLINT BARTON: Damn you!

NATASHA ROMANOFF: Let me go.

CLINT BARTON: No. Please, no.   


NATASHA ROMANOFF: Clint. Please, tell Steve...I never stopped loving him. 

CLINT BARTON: Nat, stop. There has to be another way. Let  _ me _ . 

NATASHA ROMANOFF: [Shaking her head no] It's okay. 

CLINT BARTON: Please– [Natasha kicks the wall, falls off the rope, and plummets to the ground.] NO!

[The shot shows her body on the ground, dead. A boom in the sky sends Clint in a pool of water with the Soul Stone in his hand. He hits the ground out of sadness, looks up at the sky, broken that his best friend is gone.]

[His Quantum Suit activates and he shrinks back to the present day, soon joined by the others returning from their journeys.]

[Cut to the Avengers HQ and the Quantum platform everyone looks around to see all the recovered stones]

BRUCE BANNER: Did we get them all?

RHODEY: You telling me this'll actually work?

[There's a pause as everyone starts to realize someone is missing]

BRUCE BANNER: Clint, where's Nat?

[The silence from Clint tells them all they need to know. The mission was completed but at a dire cost. Sadness overtakes everyone. Steve stares at Clint, not believing what he's hearing. Bruce falls to his knees and pounds the floor in grief.]

[Cut to outside HQ. Lakeside, Tony, Steve, Thor, Clint, and Bruce are mourning their fallen teammate and friend]

TONY STARK: Do we know if she had family?

STEVE ROGERS: Yeah. Us.

THOR: (confused) What?

TONY STARK: I just asked him a question–

THOR: Yeah, you're acting like she's dead. Why are we acting like she's dead? We have the stones, right? As long as we have the stones, Cap, we can bring her back, isn't that right? [GROWLING.] So stop this shit. We're the Avengers, get it together.

CLINT BARTON: We can't get her back.

THOR: Wha– what?

CLINT BARTON: It can't be undone. It can't.

[Thor dryly laughs.]

THOR: I'm sorry. No offense, but you're a very earthly being. Okay? We're talking about space magic. And "can't" seems very definitive don't you think?

CLINT BARTON: [to Thor] Yeah, look, I know that I'm way outside my paygrade here. But she still isn't here, is she?

THOR: No, that's my point–

CLINT BARTON: It can't– be undone. Or that's at least what the red floating guy had to say. [shouts] Maybe you wanna go talk to him, okay? GO GRAB YOUR HAMMER, AND YOU GO FLY AND TALK TO HIM!

[Clint's anger is quickly replaced with grief]

CLINT BARTON: It was supposed to be me. She sacrificed her life for that goddamn stone. She bet her life on it.

[In a burst of anger, Bruce grabs a bench and hurls it clear across the lake. His anger spent, he turns to the others with a resigned look on his face]

BRUCE BANNER: She's not coming back. We have to make it worth it. We have to.

[We focus on Steve as he numbly stares out into the lake. This all seems like a fever dream. He looks down in despair and notices the ring on his left ring finger. Now only a reminder of Natasha, a reminder of what could’ve been. He runs his finger over the band and stands up.]

STEVE ROGERS: We will.

* * *

(Skipping past the final battle + funeral to the final time travel scene.)

[Scene cuts to Bruce, Steve, Sam and Bucky at the woods]

BRUCE BANNER: Now, remember– You have to return the stones to the exact moment you got them. Or you're gonna open up a bunch of nasty alternative realities.

STEVE ROGERS: Don't worry, Bruce. Clip all the branches.

BRUCE BANNER: You know, I tried. When I had the gauntlet, the stones, I really tried to bring her back. [Looks at Steve] I miss her, man. I’m sure…[Bruce trails off, not sure how to approach this with Steve. He knew the way the two talked about each other, as they both used him as a source of advice during the time they were on the run.]

STEVE ROGERS: [Shaking his head] I can’t remember what life was like without her. I can’t imagine how it’s going to be. I don't want to. 

[Bruce nods. Sam walks over to Steve.]

SAM WILSON: You know, if you want, I can come with you.

STEVE ROGERS: You're a good man, Sam. This one's on me, though.

[Steve goes over to Bucky.]

STEVE ROGERS: Don't do anything stupid 'till I get back.

BUCKY BARNES: How can I? You're taking all the stupid with you.

[They both hug each other]

BUCKY BARNES: Gonna miss you, Buddy.

STEVE ROGERS: It's gonna be okay, Buck.

[Steve goes over to the Quantum portal and dons the Quantum suit]

SAM WILSON: How long is this gonna take?

BRUCE BANNER: For him? As long as he needs. For us? Five seconds.

[Steve picks up Mjolnir]

BRUCE BANNER: Ready, Cap? Alright. We'll meet you back here, okay?

STEVE ROGERS: You bet. [looks at Bucky and Sam, smiles a little] See you in a minute.

BRUCE BANNER: Going quantum. Three, two, one–

[Steve disappears into the Quantum portal]

BRUCE BANNER: And returning in, five, four, three, two, one–

[Steve appears on the pad]

STEVE ROGERS: [Out of breath] Phew. That was a trip. 

[We see Bucky, looking confused at Steve. Steve notices, steps down from the platform, and walks towards him.]

BUCKY BARNES: Wha - you told me…

STEVE ROGERS: I had a change of heart. [grins] It’s not the end of the line yet, pal. 

[Bucky sighs, relieved. He smiles for the first time in ages, beyond thankful to have his best man by his side.]

SAM WILSON: So, where do we go from here? 

STEVE ROGERS: When I went to Vormir to return the Soul Stone, I saw Nat. [struggles] I gave the Red Skull the stone, but as soon as I did, she disappeared. Like she was never there. I don’t know how any of this works, but she might still be here, in this universe, alive. Somewhere. We have to find her. 

BUCKY BARNES: We will. We all will. 

[Steve looks around at Sam, Bucky, and Bruce. He nods in approval.]

STEVE ROGERS: Then let's start. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IDK IF I SHOULD FINISH THIS OR WHAT


End file.
